National Maritime Day Celebration

Philadelphia, PA - 17 August 2003

Page Updated 27 August 2003 12:17

Click on any thumbnail photo to see a larger version of the
photo

Sunday, 17 August 2003, was a special day for Sea Scouts from SSS
YORKSHIRE - Sea Scout Ship 25 of York, PA. The Sea Scouts were the
guests of Dante Mattioni, Esquire, a Philadelphia admiralty lawyer, at
Philadelphia's National Maritime Day celebration held at Penn's Landing on the
Delaware River. The day began with an early reveille and a 90 minute
drive to Philadelphia to arrive in time for a delicious buffet breakfast at Independence
Seaport Museum.

Breakfast at Independence Seaport Museum

During the breakfast, the Sea Scouts had the opportunity to meet CAPT
Eric J. Shaw, USCG, Commanding Officer of the U.S. Coast Guard Barque EAGLE,
America's Tall Ship, which formed the centerpiece for the celebration.

Bronze Plaque at the Seaport Museum from the Cruiser USS OLYMPIA commemorating her victory over
the Spanish at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish American War.

Soon it was time to board the EAGLE for the formal part of the Maritime
Day celebration. (To visit the official EAGLE website, click
here).

The
Admiral boards EAGLE, with Sea Scouts trailing astern.

CAPT Shaw greets the Admiral.

CAPT Shaw greets the Sea Scouts.

Attorney Mattioni acts as Master of Ceremonies for a Chapel of the four
Chaplains induction ceremony. The Chapel commemorates the four
chaplains of the torpedoed troopship USAT DORCHESTER who gave up their
lifejackets to others and knelt together in prayer as DORCHESTER sank at
night beneath the ice-cold waters off Greenland in February 1943. One
of the four chaplains was Rabbi Alexander D. Goode from York, PA and was a
founder of York's Boy Scout Troop 37 (the Skipper's troop as a boy).

Drew thinks it would be a lot of fun to speed around all day in a USCG RHIB
- Rigid Hull Inflatable Boat. Skipper agrees.

Isaiah, Drew, and Carl with our USCG Officer Candidate tour guide. He
took us places on EAGLE the public rarely sees. Many
thanks. SEMPER PARATUS!

Stern view of EAGLE.

Skipper and EAGLE while en route across the Delaware River by ferry boat to
Camden, NJ.

View of EAGLE from the ferry.

Three Sea Scout sailors ready to "hit the beach" in Camden, NJ.

Skipper, Carl, Drew, and Isaiah preparing to board the IOWA-Class
battleship, USS NEW JERSEY (BB-62) at the Camden docks. We got in free
because we were in our whites, which was quite nice. Thank you, NEW
JERSEY!

Turrets 1 and 2 of the mighty battleship, USS NEW JERSEY
(B-62). Each of these 16" 50 caliber Mark 7 naval rifles is
capable of hurling an armor piercing shell weighing as much as a Volkswagen
a distance of up to 25 miles. That's some shooting! FIREPOWER
FOR FREEDOM is her motto. For more information about the NEW JERSEY's
awesome guns, click
here. For a full history through the end of the Viet Nam war of
the USS NEW JERSEY, the Navy's most decorated battleship, click
here. For her post-Viet Nam history, click
here.

A tour guide explains the size and effectiveness of a 16-inch High Capacity
(HC) shell weighing 1,900 pounds which leaves the barrel with a muzzle
velocity of 2,635 feet per second on a trip of 22.8 miles when the gun
barrel is elevated to 45 degrees. Each shell is propelled by the ignition of
5 silk bags containing gun powder, one of which sits at the base of the
sell. A heavier 2,700 pound armor piercing shell will travel 21 miles
at the same elevation.

The Flag Quarters on NEW JERSEY. This battleship has flown the flags
of Admirals Raymond A. Spruance, William F. Halsey, Jr., Oscar Badger,
Harold M. Martin, Arthur W. Radford, C. Turner Joy, H. R. Thurber, Richard
L. Connoly, Herbert H. McClean, and Joseph H. Clark to name a few. NEW
JERSEY served at various times as flagship for the Third Fleet, Fifth Fleet,
and the Seventh Fleet. She has been host to General Omar Bradley,
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, President Rhee of South Korea, and
many other dignitaries. She was personally re-commissioned by President of
the United States Ronald Regan on December 28, 1982.

When she was nicknamed the Big J, they weren't kidding: at 888' 7"
long, 108' 1" wide (just small enough to squeeze through the Panama
Canal), 38' draft at full load, and 54,889 tons full load displacement, she
is massive by anybody's definition. Yet her 8 Babcock & Wilcox steam
boilers turning 4 screws with a total of 212,000 shaft horsepower could move
her full displacement tonnage including 2,500,000 gallons of fuel, 1,188
round of 16-inch ammunition and 130 officers and 3000 enlisted men through
the water at over 33 knots. (She supposedly made 38 knots on her sea
trials).

Carl, Isaiah, and Drew wonder what it would be like to be gazing down at
exotic ports of call in the Pacific, Atlantic, or Mediterranean instead of
Camden, NJ. Don't worry, lads, there's a friendly Navy recruiter in
your home town.

A view down "Broadway", one of many long, long passageways on the
Big J.

Enlisted Quarters - also available for overnight encampments by Scout
groups. We plan to try an overnight visit as soon as we can. For
encampment information, click
here.

An explanation of the Big J's ribbon bar and why she is the most decorated
battleship in the United States Navy. She served in World War II, the
Korean war, the Viet Nam War, Beirut Lebanon, and the Persian Gulf.
For her post-Viet Nam history, click
here.

Enlisted mess decks.

A fire control computer inside one of Big J's three massive gun turrets.

Bow on, NEW JERSEY shows the beautiful lines that made the Big J and her
sisters, IOWA, MISSOURI, and WISCONSIN the epitome of battleship
development. "Aye, Lassie, the world will 'no see your likes
again."

CAPT Robert C. Peniston, in his
decommissioning speech, December 17, 1969.

For more information about visiting the Battleship NEW JERSEY in Camden,
NJ, click here to
go to the ship's official website.

The Ship 25 crew dines at Penn's Landings Chart House Restaurant to
celebrate a great Maritime Heritage Day experience. The
restaurant windows provide magnificent views of the Delaware River and the Battleship
NEW JERSEY in the background.

Storekeeper Isaiah takes a connoisseur's approach to a glass of cherry aqua,
otherwise known a table water with a cherry in it. By whatever name
you call it, it sure tasted good after a long day in the hot sun.

Ship 25's invitation to Maritime Heritage Day came about through the
intervention of Merchant Mariner and Friend of Ship 25 Royal Cannon, who
served on this Victory Ship during World War II. Thanks, Captain! Thanks,
Attorney Mattioni!